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"That has nothing to do with it," Salvo replied stiffly, "Kane is like his father only in his devotion to
serving the ville."
Abrams snorted again to indicate his disapproval. "Yes, we believed the same of his father. To our
sorrow. And your gain."
Baron Cobalt laughed, a soft, lilting sound. "The proposal has merit, on a number of points. If Kane
refuses your offer, Salvo, an accident on duty can be easily arranged. Or like his father, he can be
appointed to an administrative position and never be seen again. Yes, Salvo, I approve."
Salvo nodded formally. "Thank you. You will find your confidence well placed."
He was careful to strike the correct balance between expressing his gratitude and a deserved pride.
The golden light flickered, dimmed, and Baron Cobalt stepped back beneath the arch. The audience was
over as quickly as it had begun.
The pudgy man named Horan wasted no time whirling on Salvo. "This is a dangerous game you're
playing."
Salvo smiled cheerfully. "Consider, then, that the advantage far outweighs the risk."
"How can you possibly trust Kane?" Guende asked incredulously. "His father, his grandfather"
"He's a Magistrate first," Salvo announced. "A Kane second."
He left the other members of the Trust standing on the Persian carpet. Abrams caught up with him before
he passed through the final arch. "A word, if you will."
Abrams's carriage was ramrod straight, despite his deeply seamed face, the iron gray in his hair and
square-cut beard. Salvo nodded to him respectfully. Abrams was one of the old guard of the division,
entering it at the very end of the first generation. Despite the fact he had served as an administrator longer
than he had as a Magistrate, Salvo had to admit that Abrams's performance in both positions was
outstanding.
"Your plan seems ill conceived," said Abrams softly, grimly. "Almost perverse."
"It is not, Administrator, I assure you." The deference in Salvo's tone was genuine. "Why do you think
so?"
"Because Kane has options. He is not alone, he is not isolated. He has a friend, and therefore an emotional
center. A grounding in an identity."
Salvo nodded. "You mean Grant."
"Grant. Though fraternization between Magistrates is discouraged, you have allowed those two to forge a
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bond."
"Grant is due for administrative transfer. That will break the bond."
Abrams shook his head. "It will weaken it, not shatter it. The bond must be broken as dramatically and
traumatically as possible, so Kane will seek a substitute to fill the void."
Abrams's voice was like his hairall iron. He took a deep breath and said, "As was done to me."
Salvo suddenly understood. Abrams's lover had been chilled by a self-styled Pit boss decades ago. He'd
become cynical and morose, and therefore an excellent candidate for the Trust. Salvo also understood
Abrams had accepted the likelihood that the murder had been ordered by the baron, not the Pit boss.
"Yes, Administrator," Salvo said softly. "As was done to you."
He turned and left the chambers. As he entered the brilliantly lit hall, he paused long enough to stare
contemplatively at the two guards. They met his gaze impassively.
"Soon," he said, and went on his way. His thoughts swarmed with speculations. He would make his new
responsibility a spectacular success, and then neither the Baron nor the Directorate could deny him
anything, even a whim. Nothing else mattered. Instant termination would be the immediate fate of anyone
who opposed or even postponed that success.
Including, even if circumstances didn't warrant it, the third Magistrate to bear the loathsome name of
Kane.
Chapter Seven
Kane didn't go home. He hung out in the dayroom, taking a corner table away from the door, blocked
from the glances of passersby in the corridor by people coming and going. The table was also out of the
range of the vid spy-eye attached to the ceiling. He sipped at a cup of sub, and read over the daily Intel
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report transmitted along the ville network.
Intel Level. Copies All Mag Divs
Ragnarville, MNAfter several incursions in the territory, a band of roamers was apprehended and
terminated. Sympathizers within ville also terminated.
Mandeville, KSMeasures taken to degrade fighting ability among hostile Lakota group include
introduction of nerve toxins into hunting grounds.
Snakefishville, CAReport of stickie clan settlement on Western Island investigated, no foundation for
report.
The reports from the other five villes comprising the network were similar. Even by reading between the
lines, there wasn't even the vaguest hint of a rebellion brewing anywhere, much less the appearance of a
charismatic warlord.
The territories controlled by the villes were vast. Cobaltville itself had absorbed several Colorado
baronies, including Vistaville and Hightower. The other ville territories were arranged similarly, so if
anything as big and nasty as Salvo had described was brewing, some crumb of Intel should appear on the
reports.
Though it was heresy to even think of it, Kane was certain Salvo was lying. The barbs about his father and
grandfather had been aimed to prick his pride, make him question his doubts.
Kane held his two namesakes in high regard, and he felt that he, the third Kane to serve as a Magistrate,
had to measure up to a level of duty established decades before.
The use of first names in the division had been taboo for three generations. The original drafters of the
Program of Unification had believed that only surnames, family names, engendered a sense of obligation
to the duties of their ancestors' office, ensuring that subsequent generations never lost touch with their
hereditary roles as enforcers. Last names became badges of social distinction, almost titles.
If nothing else, Kane thought a little sourly, it kept every man toeing the line so he wouldn't tarnish the
honor of his antecedents.
Kane had never met his grandfather. He had been chilled fifteen years before he was born in the retaking
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